My Queen
by makos-lightningrod
Summary: Today is her twenty-first birthday. Tonight is her coronation. Tonight is when she becomes queen. Ice Queen/Bodyguard AU


**A/N: **After seeing** aer-dna's art (**** post/105786512901/im-a-loser-that-loves-drawing-so-much-that-i) **and Ice Queen/Body Guard AU, we needed to write something based off her drawings and her headcanons. They're just so damn fabulous.

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><p>Today is her twenty-first birthday.<br>Tonight is her coronation.  
>Tonight is when she becomes queen.<p>

It sounds more exciting than it really is. After all, tonight is more about going through the motions and sitting on her throne as diplomats and citizens bestow gifts upon gits to her as if it's her sole purpose. It isn't that she doesn't find it all very interesting, but she's hungry and all she really wants to do is sink her teeth into an aromatic bowl of jasmine rice and glazed arctic hen. Their cook always serves out the best.

She gives out her smiles and thank-yous to those who step forward to touch her hand as they give their gifts. Soon enough, she feels her father take her arm and walk her through to the banquet hall where she delights in seeing the blue and white lanterns flickering with flames inside and the tables set for a feast.

"I'm starving," she whispers to him and he doesn't hold back a laugh as her stomach grumbles loudly.

"Well, it won't be long until you'll have so much food that you won't even know what to do with it," he teases as he escorts her through the middle of the room to be seated. She nearly sits in the chair beside the middle - the one that her father has sat in for nearly forty years. It's a force of habit, but she sits down and feels a swell of nervousness overcome her.

She's been groomed to take this throne her entire life, but it isn't until this moment that she realizes what it means. Her eyes scan the room as people begin to take their seats for the dinner and she holds her breath, wanting to see the one person that she's been wanting to see for months.

"I'm sure he wanted to be here. He's a guard after all. They can't just easily pick up and leave like that, Korra," her father says to her as one of the servers powers them tea.

She pouts for a moment and sips her tea, letting it warm her fingertips. Even though she is a waterbender, she's not completely immune to the chill of the South Pole. "Well, I sent him the invitation months ago. And I told him about it when you went to talk to those dignitaries. He said he would come."

"He said that he would try to come," he murmurs. "You shouldn't be so hard on him."

Korra pouts and sits back for a moment. She hastily puts those thoughts at the back of her mind when dinner is served and she breathes in the steam rising from the crispy skin of the arctic hen.

She waits until everyone is seated before her eyes flicker one more around the faces gathered. He isn't here, and she wishes her heart doesn't drop. She thought he was her friend, and she wants the silent support he always gives her. Even though they barely see each other more than once or twice a year, she feels like she can conquer the world with him at her side.

Korra focuses on her artic hen, picking at the skin as a signal to the others that they may now eat. Even though she said she was starving, the food settles like a dead weight in her stomach and she barely eats more than half before the course is whisked away and the next one is served.

Stewed sea prunes sit in the bowl in front of her, and she makes such a face of distaste her father can't help but laugh. "I know they're your favorite, so I made sure the kitchen staff knew to make them for tonight," her father says, knowing that she feels no such way about the slimy meal.

"You're a horrible father," she sniffs as she dips her spoon into the stew and pretends to eat, moving the prunes around in the soupy mixture and hoping that it'll be taken from her quickly. The smell isn't doing anything to settle her stomach, and she discreetly steps on her father's foot beneath the table.

She may be the queen now, but she is still a child on the inside.

"Now, now, you have to behave better than that," he teases her. She rolls her eyes and wishes Naga were there so that she can eat the rest of the prunes. Because she actually likes them which astounds Korra, but it gave her the excuse to feed her all the things she didn't eat at dinner time when she was growing up.

A movement at the back of the hall catches her eye and she looks up. He's faded into the tapestry and stands like he's a guard of the Water Tribe, but it's impossible to mistaken him for one. "Excuse me," she says as she stands and tries to walk at a leisurely pace, but she can't help but pick it up as she sees him slip through the door where she follows.

"You came," she says with a deep breath before she fists her hand and slams it into his shoulder. Pain radiates through her arm as she forgets that he's suited in his body of armor and she shakes her hand out, trying to null the pain. "Took you long enough."

"I'm sorry. I came as soon as I could," he said, a faint smile on his face.

"Would you take that awful thing off?" She asks, reaching up to undo the snaps on his helmet and pull it off. She frowns for a moment and looks down at the obsidian helmet, the smooth surface warm against her fingers. Her lip juts out in a disapproving pout. "I don't like you wearing this. How do you even see anything?" She squints at the grates that hardly show off the familiar golden eyes from her visits to the Fire Kingdom.

His hair is flattened in some places, but spiking up in awkward angles in the rest, and he raises his hand after a moment of looking at her in astonishment. She wants to tell him that it doesn't matter that he isn't impeccable, that helmet hair is actually cute on him, but instead she concentrates on not letting the blood rise to her cheeks and give her away.

"I'm supposed to wear it, it's a part of the uniform," he says finally as he just takes the helmet out of her hands and wishes that she wasn't so done up, that it was years ago when they just met and him being a guard and her being a princess hadn't seemed like such an obstacle for their friendship. Back then he would have just placed the helmet over her head so she could see that there was a lot more visibility offered by the helmet than what she originally thought.

But he can't do that because she is a queen now, and queen's don't wear sweaty guardman's helmets. Even if it's just to prove a point.

"It's a silly part of the uniform," she scoffs as she crosses her arms and tries not to think about how she should go back to her seat in the hall. It was a coronation dinner for her, after all, and to be missing the main attraction would surely send the nobility and dignitaries into a tizzy.

"Well, you don't need to wear it for dinner," she murmurs. "You aren't working tonight. You're here as my guest, Mako," she pouts, making a grab for the helmet again, but he immediately moves it out of her reach. "Oh, come on. That's really not fair," she huffs. "Besides, I know you must be starving." Now that he's there, she can feel her hunger replenish itself.

"I'd feel wrong not wearing it though. I am a guard." He says it with such pride, knowing that he has no reason not to - it is an honor to be part of any of the royal guards, especially the Fire Kingdom's.

"Well, maybe you should be my personal guard then," she says, crossing her arms over her chest. To be quite honest, it isn't a bad idea. Her father has always felt quite particular about the guards chosen to protect her, specifically. And she knows that her father is secretly impressed by Mako and his discipline ever since they'd seen it on display while in the Fire Kingdom when there was a coup against the Firelord.

"Well, for starters…I'd pretty much melt the entire South Pole down," he says dryly, holding his helmet under his arm and hastily trying to fix his hair with his other. He knows she doesn't care, but it's difficult to stand next to her when she looks beautiful and exactly how a queen should look - powerful and the highest sovereign.

"So what? It would break tradition, but think about how amazing it would be if I had a firebender in my guard? No one would ever try to attack me," Korra tells him with a wide smile. She can't believe that she's actually suggesting this and actually sounding serious about it - but the more that comes out of her mouth, the more she likes the idea.

He swallows and tries to find a good excuse to not do what she wants because the thought of guarding her is almost too good to be true. "I don't think the other guards would…accept my presence amidst them."

"The guards will accept whatever I say," she answers with a rather unladylike snort, and he tries to keep his mouth from smiling at the fact that even beneath her crown, she's still the girl he knows inside. "And I demand that you'll be my new personal guard, Mako. No more of this two times a year mess."

She sucks her bottom lip between her teeth, worrying it before she softly says, "I need my best friend. Now more than ever."

Mako's expression immediately softens and he finds himself conflicted. He knows that as a new queen, she'll be the most vulnerable amongst the four nations, but he also knows that she can beat anyone that tries to take her on. But the idea of being there just in case it happens gives him some kind of relief. "I think you should talk about it with your father first before you can really say that."

She gives him a glare. "Are you saying that I'm not capable of making my own demands?" She asks, her hands on her hips.

He gulps and shakes his head. "No! No, that's not what I'm saying at all! I'm just know that if it were Firelord Izumi, she would hate to break certain traditions that are good for the royal family. And maybe your father would appreciate knowing that, too."

"Well, then I'll inform him then." Korra doesn't even wait for any kind of retort from him before she turns away, her robe flowing after her as she enters the banquet hall once more.

"Korra-!" He reaches out to stop her, but it's too late and it's all he can do to grab her. But he flushes upon entering the hall with several tables turning to stare at him because his uniform can be quite intimidating. He hastily puts his helmet back on and hides beneath his armor, taking a deep breath.

The young waterbender makes her way back to the head table and sits down beside her father who turns to look at her in amusement. "I see Mako's finally made it. You should have had one of the servants bring him a change of clothes. He must be uncomfortable in that armor-"

"I want Mako to be my personal guard," she says without another moment. She takes a sip of her tea and relishes in the fact that it's still hot.

Tonraq looks at his daughter and then glances back at the firebender who is trying to blend into the tapestry along the wall behind them. "Mako is a Fire Kingdom guard, Korra, surely your guards are suitable…" He stops and can see the stubborn expression in his daughter's eyes and knows that there is no dissuading her.

"What does Mako say about this proposition?"

"Of course, he said he wants to," she says, even though she knows he never said it in so many words. "He was just worried about tradition. He thought it best that I ask you if there is a precedent for this….decree." Korra is rather proud of her dignified response to her father's questions. She feels more like a queen now than the moment the crown was placed on her head.

Tonraq gazes at his daughter and then looks around the room before settling again on the guard that stands out in the hall of blue and white. "No, I do not believe there is a precedent, Korra, but…I know of no other man that would guard your safety the way Mako would."

It is as close as he can come to giving her his blessing on the path she chooses. The Ice Kingdom was steeped in tradition, and sometimes they were as slow moving to join their more progressive brethren in other kingdoms. But knowing his daughter, Tonraq knows she will not allow that mindset to thrive in her court.

A smile stretches on her face as she reaches forward to give her father a tight embrace. It's not proper to display such affection at a time like this, but she doesn't care. Her father would have a heart attack, but she says to elsewhere with tradition. She knew when she became queen, a lot of things would change.

As she pulls back, she turns to look at Mako and realizes how out of place he looks. She stands and walks the short distance to him. "Would you stop being a guard for a while and just be my friend?" She asks, remembering the young boy she would play with since Iroh II was always too busy to do so. "As your potential queen, I demand that you take that uniform off and change into something more suitable for the evening, Mako." She wants to give him a hug too, but such a thing would cause an upset with the members of the court.

He looks dumbfounded at her news and flushes. "A-Really?" He blinks before she calls over to one of her attendants and tells her to escort him to a room to change for the night.

When he returns, he feels awkward in his formal wear and pulls at his collar, knowing that he's buttoned it too much. So he unbuttons the top two buttons and reaches up to fix his hair just as he enters the hall. He tries to smooth it as much as he can, but knows it's a pointless task so he just continues on.

The seat next to his new queen is vacant, and he knows she expects him to take it, but it's hard to force his feet to such a place of honor. To sit at her right hand… He pulls out the seat and winces when it scrapes against the floor, but soon he's sitting and trying to ignore the whispers and stares.

"That is much better," Korra says as she looks him over, her eyes lingering on the small patch of skin his shirt shows off. "Have you thought any more on my proposal? I do wish that you'd be my guard, Mako. I-I think I would feel better, knowing that you have my back in all matters."

Mako gazes at her, feeling a little exposed because usually he can look at her as much as he wants from behind the safety of his helmet and know she can't tell that he's staring. Now, her blue eyes meet his, and he can't help the blush that races across his cheeks. "I-yes, I would be honored, K-my queen."

She immediately shows her scowl at that. "Well, that's going to have to change," she murmurs with a wrinkled nose. "I never…ever want you to call me queen. Ever. No honorary titles because I don't intend on responding to them if you do that," she mutters, eating a dumpling from the small dish.

"But-" He exhales and looks away for a moment. "All right." It's an adjustment for him, but he says nothing as he looks down at his dish of dumplings.

"Eat. That's what you're supposed to do," she whispers to him before laughing. She knows that he's so used to being at attention and never letting himself relax when he's in his own court, but she reaches over to him and gives his arm a squeeze beneath the table.

He glances at her with a tender smile on his lips before he picks up a dumpling and pops it in his mouth. The flavors explode on his tongue and he can't help the little sound of satisfaction that leaves him. "You're going to be the kind of queen I have to chase around constantly because she's deciding to be improper, aren't you?" He doesn't really mind, but it will be a definite change of pace from the Fire Kingdom.

"Yes, probably," she answers as she looks at him and drops a wink, looking adorable and not at all sly like she supposes. "But you'll come to love that about me, Mako. Our life will be interesting."

Mako can see the spark lighting up her eyes, and he knows that she's right. Their life would be interesting.

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><p>This may or may not become multi-chaptered depending on what people think about it!<p> 


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